| Before implementing a new nutrient, lighting type or irrigation schedule to an entire operation, it’s common for cultivators to conduct internal trials on a small group of cannabis plants.
As growers understand, experimentation is essential before moving forward with a wide-scale change. In-house research is a constant for many.
And for years, many of these findings remained in-house, confined to individual operations, both legacy and licensed. For many reasons, cultivation best practices were not widely shared.
That has shifted. The number of states that have legalized cannabis for adult use has gone from 2 to 21 since the year Cannabis Business Times was founded, helping foster more open conversations and collaboration. Many cultivators and business owners have kindly shared their time with CBT editors and at our annual Cannabis Conference, and their willingness to talk about their trials and triumphs helps others launch their operations on more solid footing and supports our mission: to help accelerate the success of licensed cannabis cultivators.
University researchers also have shared their expertise with CBTand Cannabis Conference attendees, as the federal legalization of cannabis defined as hemp allowed horticulture programs to expand their studies for faculty willing to take that leap on what is still a stigmatized plant. Brian Whipker, Ph.D., and his team of students from North Carolina State University wrote about their findings on optimizing plant health on a regular basis in CBT’s Nutrient Matters and Cultivation Matters series, and there are countless other examples.
For the January cover story, CBT kicked off 2023 by putting the spotlight on researchers like Bruce Bugbee, Ph.D., of Utah State University, whose investigations questioning previous assumptions about lighting could change the way cannabis cultivators do business and improve operations. As cultivators and researchers continue to share their work with us, we'll continue to share their findings with you. Read CBT contributor Jolene Hansen's article for more about what leaders at four university cannabis research programs are exploring now.
- Michelle Simakis, Editor-in-Chief |
